Railroad-tie clamp for street railways



' April 1s, 1929.

L. J. FENTON A RAILRAD TIE CLAMP Fon STREET RAILwAYs Filed Sept. 24,'. 1928 vwhich is provided with a pair permit access to Patented Apr. 16, 1929.

UNITED STATES'PATENT OFFICE.

LORN J. FENTON, GF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO THE INTERNATIONAL STEEL TE COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHO, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

RAILROAD-TIE CLAMP FOR STREET RAILWAYS.

Application flied September 24, 1928.

This invention relates generally to a rail fastening element or clamp and more particularly to a jaw type tie clamp which is particularly adapted for street or boulevard railways and which is also well adapted for use with steel railroad ties of the twin type.

'lhemain object of the invention is to provide a simple and efficient rail clamp which is particularly adapted for use in detachably securing a rail to a railroad tie or other rail supporting member which is embedded 1n the concrete and disposed below the road surface and which also is readily accessible to the bolt which holds the amp and rail in place. Another object of the invention is to provide a rail clamp of the character described which can be made in one piece and which is well adapted for quantity production at a comparatively low cost.

Further and more limited objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds and by reference to the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional viewv disclosing a railroad rail secured in place by a pair of rail clamps constructed in accordance with my invention and Fig. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the tie plate l with the lrail secured in place.

Referring now to the drawings, the reference character l designates the rail supporting portion of a steel tie of the twin type and of oppositely disposed T-shaped openings spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the width of the base of a standard rail.l

There are preferably four such openings disposed two on each side of the rail, although only two are shown. The rail clamps 3, which form the main feature of this invention, consist essentially of a steel forging shaped in section7 as shown most clearly in Fig. l. Each rail clamp has a right angularly disposed portion 4 which for convenience will be referred to as the heel. The under surface of each clamp has a flat bearing surface 5, a recessed portion 6 through which extends a cylindrical opening 7, and an angular recess or notch 8 adapted to receive a portion of the base of the rail therein.

Each clamp 3 is inserted within t-he opening 2, as shown in Fig. 1 and is secured therein by means of a bolt 9 and nut l0. The head use in constructing' 2 which arer Serial No. 307,876.

ll of the bolt 9 is substantially rectangular .m shape and of such size that the head when in one position may be inserted through the opening 2 and then turned at right angles so as to engage beneath the edges of the T- shaped opening, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. lVhen it is desired to secure a rail to the tie, the rail is placed on the tie in the position shown in Fig. l and the clamps inserted within the openings as shown, the base of the rail engaging in the angular recesses 8. Lfach clamp 3 has an upstanding tubular portion through which the stem or neck of the bolt 9 extends. The tubular portion 3 is preferably cast integral with the clamp. 1 By screwing down on the nuts 10 which oear against the top of the tubular portions 3a, the clamps will be pulled tight against the rail to securely fasten the rail to the tie. The flat bearing surfaces 5 of the clamps bear on the top of the tie at the points aka and the heels l of the clamps. project through the openings 2 and bear against the rear face thereof and serve to guide the clamps and to hold the same square with the base of the rail. The rail clamps being spaced apart as shown, serve to maintain rails parallel with each other. It will thus be seen that the clamps pivot about the points -a and act as levers of the second class and serve to secure the rail against displacement with respect to the tie. Disposed along each rail and preferably welded to the tie plates are a pair of downwardly converging stringers or baffle plates l2 and 13 which form a trench or channel along the rail which is lilled with a readily removable road forming material up to the level of the remaining portion of the road surface.

vIn order to provide access to the l dispose over the top of each of the nuts l0 a. cap or block lll of readily removable material such as lead, the top of which is bu'n"ed oli so as to be flush with the road surface. Should the rail clamp become loosened during the life of the track, the clamp can be tightened by removing the cap l-l, thereby bolts 9,

, permit-ting access to the nuts l0 without dis- Various changes may be made in 'the details of construction without departing from the spirit of the invention and itis understood that my invention is limited only in accordance with the scope of the-appended claims. f

It will now be clear that l have provided a rail fastening element which will accomplish the objects of the invention as hereinbefore stated.

Having thus described. my invention, what l claim is:

l. ln a street railway road construct-ioni, the combination of a road surface having a trench therein adapted to be filled with a readily removable road forming material, rail supporting members disposed within the said trench, a rail supported by said rail supporting members, rail clamps for connecting said rail with said rail supporting niembers, bolts connecting sait, rail clamps with said tie plate, said rail clamps having hollow extensions thereon opposite said bolts terminating adjacent the top of said trench whereby to permit access to said bolts without removing the material filling said trench.

2. ln a stre railway road construction, the con'ibination of aroad surface having a trench therein adapted to be filled with a readily removable road forming maternal, rail supporting` members disposed within the said trench, a rail supported by said rail supporting members, rail clamps for connecting said rail with said rail supporting members, bolts connecting said rail clamps with said tie plate, said rail clamps having hollow extensions thereon opposite said bolts terminating adjacent the top of said trench whereby to permit access to said bolts without removing the material filling said trench, and a removable cap secured over he top of each of-said tubular extensions, the uppersurface ofV said caps lbeing substantially flush with the road surface.

8. ln a street railway road construction, the combination of a road surface having a trench therein, of rail supporting members secured within said trench, a rail arranged within said trench and resting on said rail supporting members, rail clamps connecting said rail with said rail supporting members and having` hollow extensions thereon extending to a point adjacent the top of said trench, bolts extending through said hollow extensions and securing said rail clamps in place.

' through which the stem of the bolt vrecess at one side Il. ln a street railway road construction,

the combination of a road surface having a trench therein, rail supporting members secured within said trench, a rail supported by said rail supporting men'ioers, rail clan'ips including bolts for securing said rail in ph ce,

-a readily removable road forming material 11. 1. -i ,'Y. n mg sait tien/ch, said iail clamps having hollow extensions thereon extending to a point adjacent the top of said trench whereby to permit access to said bolts without removing the material filling the trench.

5. The combination of a -tie having openings therein spaced apart, of rail clamps secured over said openings, each clamp having a heel portion projecting into the opening, a bolt extending through said clamp and arranged within said opening, one side of said clamp having a recess adapted to receive a port-ion of a rail t ierein, the said heel portion serving as a bearing surface and as a means for holding the clamp in engagement with the rail, each clamp having a hollow upstanding extension thereon through which the stem of the bolt extends.

5. rihe combination of a steel tie having openings in the upper surface thereof, of rail clamps secured over said opening, each clamp having a heel portion projecting into the opening, a bolt extending through each clamp and having a head adapted to engage beneath the edges of the opening, each clamp on the side opposite from said heel portion having an angular recess adapted to receive a portion of a rail therein, each clamp having a hollow upstanding extension tl'iereon extends.

Y. The combination of a steel tie having a pair of oppositely disposed openings therevin spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the width of the base of a standard rail, each opening beingv substantially T-shaped, `a rail clamp secured Within each of said openings, .each rail clamp having a heel portion projecting into the opening and adapted to bear against the rear face thereof, each clamp having a hollowupstanding extension thereon through which the stem of the bolt extends.

8. A rail fastening device described adapted to be secured to a tie plate and comprising a'clamp having an angular thereof adapted to receive a portion of a rail therein and having an opening therein adapted to receive a bolt therethrough for securing the clamp to a tie plate, the opposite side of said clamp having a heel portion extending substantially at right angles to'said opening and adapted to project into an opening in the tie and having a bearing surface on its under side between said heel portion and opening, said clamp having a hollowupstanding projection thereon through which the stem of the bolt extends. i

9. A rail fastening device for use with steel ties comprising a clamp adapted to be positioned over an opening in a tieV plate and having a kheel portion adapted to project into the opening, said clamp having an opening therein disposed adjacent the center thereof and adapted to receive. a bolt therethrough and a bearing surface between said opening and heel portion, one edge of said clamp having a recessed portion adapted to receive a of the character rail therein, said clamp having a hollow upstanding projection thereon through which the stein of said bolt extends.

l0. A rail fastening device of the character described comprising a clamp having an angular recess at one sidev thereof adapted to receive a portion of a rail therein, the opposite side of said clamp having a heel portion extending at an angle thereto and adapted to project into an opening in a tie plate, said clamp being provided with an opening adapted to receive a bolt therethrough for securing the same to a tie, and a bearing surface between said opening' and heel portion, said clamp having a hollow upstanding projection thereon through which the stein of said bolt extends.

1l. A rail clamp comprising a. steel forging substantially VL-shaped in cross section and having an opening therein adapted to receive a bolt therethrough, said clarnp having a hollow upstanding projection thereon through which the stem of said bolt extends.

12. |The combination of a steel tie having oppositely disposed pairs of T-shaped openings therein, of rail clamps disposed over said openings, a bolt extending through each of said clamps, each bolt having a head shaped to engage beneath the edges of the opening, each clamp having a heel portion projecting into said opening and adapted to bear against the face of the opening, the head of each bolt being of such size and so shaped that it may be inserted through said opening and then turned at right angle whereby to engage beneath the edges of the opening, said clamp having a hollow upstanding proj ecticn thereon through which the stem of said bolt extends.

13. The combination of a tie having a plurality of substantially T-shaped openings therein, of a rail clamp secured over each of said openings, each clamp having a heel portion projecting into the opening and loosely arranged therein and adapted to bear against the rear edge thereof, a bolt extending through each clamp and having a head adapted to engage beneath the opposite edges of the opening, the edge of each clamp opposite said heel portion being provided with an angular recess adapted to receive a portion of a rail therein, and means for tightening said bolt to secure a rail to said tie plate, said clamp having a hollow upstanding projection thereon through which the stem of said belt extends.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aiix my signature.

LORAIN J. FENTON. 

